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Anantnag : In a meeting on wednesday the Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) discussed the comprehensive preventive and promotive health package offered by the rural health sector in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
President of DAK, Dr. Mohd Yusuf Tak, commended the recent appointment of over 250 doctors to the Health Department but emphasized that there is still a significant shortage of specialist doctors in rural healthcare settings. He pointed out that outside the Summer and Winter capitals, the fragility of the healthcare system is evident, making it the administration’s prime responsibility to upgrade the health delivery system by creating more specialist posts and promoting them to Consultants with predefined categorization.
General Secretary of DAK, Dr. Owais H Dar, highlighted the uneven distribution and discrepancies in the number and distribution of consultant posts across J&K. Citing examples, he noted the absence of Senior Consultant posts for specialties like Anaesthesia, Dermatology, and Psychiatry, while there is only one Senior Consultant post for Radiology, Pediatrics, and Dentistry across the entire Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. To enhance healthcare services in peripheral areas, Dr. Dar stressed the urgent need to upgrade sub-district and district-level hospitals by creating more consultant and senior consultant posts across all specialties.
Dr. Masood Rashid, President of the Society of Consultant Doctors (SCD) and Senior Executive Member of DAK, expressed concern over the non-uniform distribution of consultant and senior consultant posts across the Union Territory. He pointed out that while the Radiology Department has only 9 consultant posts in Kashmir, Jammu has 19, and there is no Senior Consultant post in the valley. Similarly, the Gynecology Department has four Senior Consultant posts in Jammu Division but none in Kashmir or Ladakh.
Dr. Arshed H Trag, Vice President of DAK, added that Medical Officers and Dental Surgeons with Post Graduate qualifications should be recategorized as specialist doctors with special incentives.
Dr. Rubeena Bhat, Spokesperson for DAK, added that rural healthcare services should be categorized in a manner similar to other hill states such as Himachal Pradesh, with incentives for peripheral and remote postings based on distance from city and district headquarters. This would encourage more doctors to serve in such areas and ensure the delivery of essential health services to underserved populations.
In conclusion, DAK urges the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Jinab Omar Abdullah, and the Hon’ble Minister of Health and Medical Education, Ms. Sakina Itoo, to urgently address this critical issue. The matter pertains not only to the welfare of healthcare professionals but also to the larger public health delivery system, which will directly impact the health and well-being of citizens across the Union Territory. The timely intervention of the administration in creating these posts and promoting specialists will help strengthen the healthcare system and reduce the disparities in health services across different regions of J&K.
